Paul Gillings - Mr Smith

Size: 301 MB
Time: 42:40
File: Flac
Released: 2022
Styles: Blues, harmonica blues
Art: Front

1. Promo (2:41)
2. Short Straight Hair (3:13)
3. Rise up to Meet Me (4:11)
4. Interstate 81 (4:18)
5. Domestic Bliss (2:45)
6. Wasted Love (3:24)
7. Mr Smith (3:53)
8. Blaming You (3:29)
9. Difference Valve (4:53)
10. Wind Down After Work Blues (3:46)
11. Stand to the Right (3:08)
12. Mouthuselah (2:55)

A Life with the mouth organ At the age of 11, Paul heard the harmonica for the very first time whilst sitting round a campfire at a Boy Scout cook-out. The harmonica was being played by his Scoutmaster at the time: Norman Ives. A bunch more of the scouts became interested in the harmonica and pretty soon they had enough for a full harmonica group. Norman Ives met with David Michelsen (AKA Dr Midnight) and between them started 'Harp Start' a free harmonica school for underprivileged children. The kid's harmonica group 'Random Sound' appeared at Glastonbury Festival and appeared on many national and international TV shows including 'Jool's Holland's Happening'. Paul and Random Sound were also invited to appear on Disney's 'Mickey Mouse Club' during a US tour in 1990 to accept a 'Golden Mickey' award for outstanding talent, they also appeared on TNN's 'Nashville Now' and CBS' 'Good Morning America' in New York. In 1993 Paul won the World Harmonica Championships in the Youth Blues/Rock section. That year Paul received an endorsement from Lee Oskar and became a Lee Oskar Preferred Player, Lee also invited Paul to play 'Why Can't We Be Friends' with the band WAR at the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Paul also appeared on the UK Children's programme 'Blue Peter'. Paul, Norman and David then toured as the harmonica group 'The Midnight Specials'. In 2016 Paul appeared on BBC's 'The One Show' playing 'House of the Rising Sun' with 'The Harpoon Blues Band'. Paul's solo acoustic album 'You Don't Even Know' was released in 2019. The album received a large amount of radio play and got to number 9 in the International Blues Broadcasters Association (IBBA) chart. In 2020 Paul's electric Blues album 'Invisible Prison' was released, featuring a full-band production. This self-produced album was recorded at Paul's home in Lowestoft with the guitar, bass, vocals and harmonica all being played by him. Only the drums were left to someone else! In May 2020 Paul became a endorser for Seydel, the world's oldest harmonica company. 'Invisible Prison' was the IBBA pick of the Month for August and reached number 4 in their chart that month. The track '3 Heads Are Better Than One' from the album was featured on Cerys Mathews' Blues Hour on BBC Radio 2. Invisible Prison also reached number 5 in the Roots Music Report chart.

Mr Smith FLAC

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Paul Gillings - Invisible Prison

Size: 112,6 MB
Time: 48:24
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2020
Styles: Electric Blues, Harmonica Blues
Art: Front

01. Start Over Again (3:32)
02. I Ain't Never Played An English Song With An English Guy (3:55)
03. Are You A Have Or Are You A Have Not (4:06)
04. Kws (3:05)
05. I Don't Know When I'm Beaten (3:50)
06. It Hurts Like Hell (3:36)
07. Passed Me By (4:07)
08. Help You (4:09)
09. 3 Heads Are Better Than 1 (3:46)
10. I'm Never Gonna Change (4:28)
11. It Beats Me Baby (2:57)
12. I Gave Up My Evening For This (3:23)
13. Waiting Blues (3:25)

At the age of 11, Paul heard the harmonica for the very first time whilst sitting round a campfire at a Boy Scout cook-out. The harmonica was being played by his Scoutmaster at the time: Norman Ives. A bunch more of the scouts became interested in the harmonica and pretty soon they had enough for a full harmonica group. Norman Ives met with David Michelsen (AKA Dr Midnight) and between them started 'Harp Start' a free harmonica school for underprivileged children. The kid's harmonica group 'Random Sound' appeared at Glastonbury Festival and appeared on many national and international TV shows including 'Jool's Holland's Happening'. Paul and Random Sound were also invited to appear on Disney's 'Mickey Mouse Club' during a US tour in 1990 to accept a 'Golden Mickey' award for outstanding talent, they also appeared on TNN's 'Nashville Now' and CBS' 'Good Morning America' in New York.

In 1993 Paul won the World Harmonica Championships in the Youth Blues/Rock section. That year Paul received an endorsement from Lee Oskar and became a Lee Oskar Preferred Player, Lee also invited Paul to play 'Why Can't We Be Friends' with the band WAR at the Jazz Cafe in Camden. Paul also appeared on the UK Children's programme 'Blue Peter'. Paul, Norman and David then toured as the harmonica group 'The Midnight Specials'.

In 2016 Paul appeared on BBC's 'The One Show' playing 'House of the Rising Sun' with 'The Harpoon Blues Band'. Paul joined 'The Jamos and Sir Mathew Band' in 2018, an acoustic act that plays at festivals and venues around the east of England. Paul also turned back to Songwriting and has been releasing tracks through Soundcloud with more than 80,000 plays to date. Solo tour dates for 2019 included Jurnet's Bar in Norwich, The Fisher Theatre, Upton Blues Festival, Folk East and The Great British Rhythm and Blues Festival. Paul's solo acoustic album 'You Don't Even Know' was released in 2019 and is on general release through all digital outlets. The album received a large amount of radio play and got to number 9 in the International Blues Broadcasters Association (IBBA) chart. Paul is also a regular tutor at the annual Harpin' by the Sea event in Brighton and Hove.

Paul recently joined the Gypsy Folk outfit Zingaro Blue and was featured on their new album 'A Handful of Songs'. Recent session

work includes playing on Kev Walford's new album 'Americanarama' and Paul Marfleet's new album 'On The Edge' on the song 'Grey Skies'.

2020 brings the birth of another solo album: 'Invisible Prison' an ELECTRIC Blues album, to be released on 13th July to all digital outlets. This self-produced album was recorded at Paul's home in Lowestoft with the guitar, bass, vocals and harmonica all being played by him. Only the drums were left to someone else! In May 2020 Paul became a endorser for Seydel, the world's oldest harmonica company.

Invisible Prison MP3
Invisible Prison FLAC

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Paul Gillings - You Don't Even Know

Size: 94,7 MB
Time: 40:30
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2019
Styles: Acoustic Harmonica Blues
Art: Front

01. Fatherhood (2:57)
02. As Crazy As Me (3:40)
03. The Age Of Condescension (3:54)
04. Phishing Blues (3:04)
05. You Don't Even Know (2:25)
06. Don't Make This What It Ain't (3:45)
07. The Sun On My Face (3:29)
08. Funeral Song (3:16)
09. St James Infirmary Blues (4:50)
10. Take This Heart Away (2:50)
11. Tweed Tube Amp And A Crystal Element (3:00)
12. All These Years (3:15)

Picture a diamond in your mind. More than likely, it looks like a specimen from ZALES or Kay Jewelers ads. Faceted, fiery, sparkling and shimmering, it dazzles your eyes if not your budget. Now imagine the same gem freshly dug from the ground. Doesn’t look like much, does it? Nevertheless, it is, in fact, a diamond. So is You Don’t Even Know, a brilliant acoustic and harmonica blues album from the UK’s Paul Gillings. The cover art is unobtrusive as can be, but once you hear the album inside, you’ll wonder why Pablo Picasso or da Vinci didn’t rise from the dead to do it. To top it all off, it’s a debut. How can anyone be this good and have released just one single studio album? Gillings has been performing for over thirty years, but only now has he graced us with his presence on a CD. Hopefully it will lead to critical acclaim in the US.

At the age of eleven, Paul heard the harmonica for the very first time while sitting round a campfire at a Boy Scout cook-out. His scoutmaster, Norman Ives, was playing harp at the time. Ives also ran a mail-order harmonica business. Several more Scouts became interested in the instrument, and soon they had enough members for a full ensemble. Around this time Norman met with David Michelsen (AKA Dr. Midnight). Between them, they began “Harp Start,” a free harmonica school for underprivileged children.

In 1993 Paul won the World Harmonica Championships in the Youth Blues/Rock and Youth Diatonic Jazz/Melodic sections, held in the Hohner stronghold of Trossingen, Germany. After victory, Paul received an endorsement from Lee Oskar himself and became a Lee Oskar Preferred Player. In 2003 Paul collaborated with Roger Trobridge, the then-chairman of the National Harmonica League to relaunch Harmonica World Magazine, working as a designer for five years. In 2018 Paul returned to songwriting, releasing tracks via Soundcloud with more than 80,000 plays to date. Solo tours for 2019 included Jurnet’s Bar in Norwich, The Fisher Theatre, Upton Blues Festival, Folk East and The Great British Rhythm and Blues Festival.

“Fatherhood” starts You Don’t Even Know off with a bang, or in this case, a buzz. It’s a paean to the earthly sort, but minus the part about death, it can also be seen as a hymn, with God as our Heavenly Father. “I want to share all my wisdom with you,” our narrator exults, along with “I want to give my possessions to you” and “I’m gonna set my high standards on you.” Who among us can’t relate, whether we’ve been fathers or not? Next comes the harrowing “As Crazy as Me,” the harp intro reminiscent of a wasp nest in a sawmill during full swing. It’ll drive you mad if you let it. “The Age of Condescension” is a bit confusing. Has the protagonist reached the age where he condescends to other people, or where other people condescend to him? Never fear, though: “Phishing Blues,” “Tweed Tube Amp and a Crystal Element” and the magnificent closer “All These Years” await. Once you finish this CD, you’ll understand why harmonica is “harp.” The kind with strings is played by angels, but several of them prefer the mouth variety instead.

To add to the magic, in the liner notes, Gillings mentions the various harmonicas he plays, from a Kongsheng Solist (in G) down to a Seydel 1847 (in F and low F). All are diamond-lustrous! ~Rainey Wetnight

You Don't Even Know

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